It is known that a user of an aerial lift must be protected, in particular with respect to risks of impacts with obstacles located near the platform of the lift. To that end, aerial lifts for people generally have an emergency stop button placed on a control console installed on their platform, which makes it possible to react to a potentially dangerous situation. Furthermore, the safety equipment for a user of such a lift may comprise a helmet and/or a harness by which the user is connected to the platform, so as to prevent risks of falling.
A new type of aerial lift is being developed, i.e. so-called large and high-capacity aerial lifts whereof the platforms support several users. These lifts allow several operators to work at heights, in a same area. The various operators present on the same platform at a height are not all located near an emergency stop button situated on the control console.
Furthermore, in case of danger, the communication between an operator situated at a height, on the platform of an aerial lift, and one or more other people situated on the ground is sometimes difficult, due to the distance and the relatively noisy environment that may prevail on the worksite. Here again, in the event imminent danger, precious seconds may be lost.
Lastly, even in the case of a user using a relatively small lift, said user may find himself stuck on the platform, at a distance from the control console that does not allow him to actuate the emergency stop button, whereas the people on the ground do not immediately notice such a dangerous situation.
It is known from KR 2010 0107839 to equip the helmet of an aerial lift user with proximity sensors making it possible to react when the helmet collides with a beam, as shown in FIG. 2 of this document. This approach makes it possible to protect a user in case of impact, but not to react early when the user detects a dangerous situation for another person present on the platform of the lift or present on the platform of another adjacent lift.